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Cosmology of the Virtual Adepts
The Virtual Adepts (VAs) have a mathematical view of the cosmos based more on theoretical physics than on the mysticism espoused by many of the other Traditions. Its origins trace back to the VAs discovery of Virtual Space back in their days as a member of the Technocracy. The invention of the telephone seemed to open up a new realm outside of normal reality, a place that existed as information and ideas. Intrigued by how two individuals conversing over the telephone talked as if they were right across from one another, they theorized that there was a realm outside normal space where distance didn't separate the two. The concept was eventually driven by the vision of Alan Turing, who believed there was a virtual reality "below" Consensual Reality, accessible by computers and where anything in the real world could be represented digitally as information. The Hypersphere Building on the theory of metric expansion of space, the VAs assert that the Tellurian is the surface of a four-dimensional hypersphere (with three spatial dimensions and one temporal dimension). The nature of the fifth dimension, upon which the hypersphere is defined, is uncertain, though it perhaps can be described as layers of reality where ideas and information are expressed in different ways. Regardless, Tradition theory holds that everything outside the hypersphere is the Deep Umbra, while everything inside it is the Virtual Space. Because the four dimensions as we know them only exist on the hypersphere's edge, space and time cease to have real meaning when one moves into either realm, an idea that validates experiences in both the Deep Umbra and the Virtual Space. Further, because anything in those realms cannot be described by their position in space-time, they exist as abstractions, pure information. The Correspondence Point If the four dimensions of the universe are on the surface of the hypersphere, then there is a point in the fifth dimension, at the center of the hypersphere, where all reality exists as a singularity. The Virtual Adepts call this the Correspondence Point; it is the place equidistant to all points on the Tellurian, and where the entire universe touches and is one. All things exist there simultaneously as Information, metaphysical constructs that describe all characteristics of a pattern and its relation to everything else in the cosmos. The digital age has shown that anything can be expressed as data through binary numbers, limited only by the physical restraints of the computers. The Correspondence Point has no limitations; the Information of all reality is held there. And according to the VAs, it follows that changing any of that Information results in changes to reality. All that is required is a means of doing so. Virtual Space The region between the hypersphere's surface and the Correspondence Point is mostly hidden to the world, but it holds particular importance to the Virtual Adepts. They believe it is a layer of reality that minds "dive" into when communicating, expressing ideas, and sharing information. Conversations over the telephone or telepathy occur in this realm, as do the imaginary worlds and actions that occur when one uses a computer. As space-time does not exist in Virtual Space, data can travel across any distance and over any time period. For instance, when reading letters decades old, it is common for the reader to have the sensation of being present with the writer. By VA logic, that sensation is accurate; their thoughts and those of the writer have met in Virtual Space. More importantly, though, Virtual Space is where these ideas can be understood by mortal minds. Indeed, much of VA magic involves lowering their consciousness into Virtual Space in order to perceive the pure Information of the Correspondence Point. Category:Mage: The Ascension glossary Category:Virtual Adepts